Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Clay and Halloween Ball Paintings

This week the new 2s class and the 1s class both experimented with clay. Each child was first given a slab of moist red clay and a few simple tools (a rolling pin and a pizza cutter). After the initial introduction, I began to slowly bring out a variety of new modeling tools and familiar items to use with the clay. The children cut, poked, and squished their clay, enjoying the cool sensory experience on these hot days. When the children began moving to the easels to paint, I encouraged them to bring the paints back to the table to use on their clay. The unexpected mix of paint and wet clay was exciting! The kids then began going to the shelf to choose new materials to work with as well (such as sticks, necklaces, and glitter).The 1s class especially enjoyed squeezing water onto their clay.After working with the clay for a while, I brought out a new golf ball painting project for the 2s class. In the spirit of Halloween, I gave them black paper and orange paint to use with their golf ball and tray. They then shook the tray around to create interesting lines on the paper.This soon turned into mixing and scooping the balls and using them with the other materials.For the 1s class, I placed a bucket of warm soapy water in the corner of the room in case they needed to wash the clay off of their hands before going outside. This was much more exciting than I had anticipated! They hung out here for a while, dumping items into the water, giggling, and using wet chalk to draw on the chalk wall.At the end of both classes, we moved outside and experimented with a larger version of the golf ball painting... another Halloween inspired piece!But of course pouring water is the most fun of all!

This looks really fun! We do lots of open-ended art projects at our house, and this is inspiring me to get out the clay more often. I like how you allowed the kids such freedom in working with the clay, adding water and paint too.

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About Me

Thanks for stopping by! I’m an artist, entrepreneur, mother of 2, and early childhood educator. I began my career as a preschool teacher, deeply intrigued by the use of art in the preschools of Reggio Emilia, Italy. While working towards a Masters in education, I had the amazing opportunity to take part in a study tour of the preschools in Reggio Emilia. This experience has shaped who I am as a teacher, an artist, and business owner.
In January of 2010 I began offering toddler art classes in my back cottage. This wonderful experience lead to the creation of The Art Pantry, an online shop for children's art supplies and creative resource for parents and caregivers.
I am extremely passionate about what I do and love sharing it all with you.
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**megan@theartpantry.com**